Iida Line

The Iida Line (飯田線, Iida-sen) is a Japanese railway line connecting Toyohashi Station in Toyohashi, Aichi with Tatsuno Station in Tatsuno, Nagano, operated by Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central). The line links eastern Aichi Prefecture and southern Nagano Prefecture through northwestern Shizuoka Prefecture. It goes through steep mountains as well as cities such as Iida and Ina. The line was originally of four different private railway lines, the first of which opened in 1897. The line has an unusually high number of so-called Hikyō stations, or hikyo-eki, which have since lost their nearby communities due to depopulation. There are 94 total stations along the route. A number of these stations have become Hikyō stations over the years. The line has been described as the "holy land for those who love touring hikyo-eki". The phrase was coined in 1999 by Takanobu Ushiyama and friends, for railroad stations that are isolated and little used. For a distance of 187 km (116 mi) between Toyokawa and Tatsuno the Iida Line does not intersect with any other railway line.